Onward and Upward — A New Soccer Start at Ciudad Nueva

The Upward Soccer League gives a new generation of little soccer players a chance to play in our Rio Grande neighborhood

About ten years ago, a soccer team was formed out of a few pick-up games, some very enthusiastic players, and a few extremely dedicated coaches. You can read about the Sun City Wolves in our recent blog post here.

This team was extremely successful, not just in competition, but also in commitment to one another off the field. The family environment that was formed between coaches and players has continued even as the players have grown and moved on to careers and families. They continue to feel that bond.

Raising a new generation of players

Our desire is to offer the same opportunity to a new group of young players. Soccer is a much-loved sport in our Rio Grande neighborhood, but access to leagues and teams is difficult, especially for our younger kids who don’t have sports teams at school. Additionally, we discovered that it took a great deal of resources to support a small number of players since the Sun City Wolves had to go out of the neighborhood to compete.

The solution? Bring a new soccer league into the Rio Grande neighborhood!

We are so proud to announce the beginning of the Upward Soccer League as a partnership between Ciudad Nueva, St. Clement’s Church, and St. Clement’s School. All children, boys and girls, going into kindergarten through 5th grade are welcome to join the league, with special priority given to our Ciudad Nueva kids who have less access to sports than some of their counterparts from outside the area.

Joining forces

Upward Sports is a national Christian organization that supports the development of players on and off the field (or court) and will help us provide the training and coordination to make our league a success.

Bruce Meyer, a long-time supporter and friend of Ciudad Nueva, has agreed to be the initial director of the league. Bruce has a great love for the game and has previous experience as a referee at the young club and high school levels of soccer.

“I love the mission and vision of Ciudad Nueva in the downtown historic Rio Grande district,” says Bruce. “My wife has been a volunteer with the organization since the beginning, and we have both helped with fundraising and other activities. I just love who they are and the work they have done over the last 14 years.”

Bruce will be attending various online and in-person trainings with Upward as well as working hard over the summer to form the teams and recruit volunteers.

We would love to see you on the field!

The goal of the league is to see players grow mentally, athletically, spiritually, and socially. To that end, all parents, volunteers, coaches, and clergy are invited to join the kids in building a league that promotes skill development, character development, and personal growth through hard work and commitment.

“The exciting thing about this league is that the child really just needs to sign up,” says Bruce. “We will do a skills evaluation for each child and then we will put them on a team, so they don’t need to ask to be put on a team or go looking for a spot. We will play 4-on-4 for the youngers unless we get enough kids to do more. The 4th and 5th grade teams will be 7-on-7, played on shortened fields, depending on number of kids per age group.”

We welcome all volunteers, and have a particular need in the following roles:

Coaches

Commissioners for the three age groups: K-1st, 2nd-3rd, and 4th-5th

Are you passionate about soccer and interested in joining us on this new adventure? There are kids in our neighborhood waiting for a coach like you! Click here or call 915.521.2951 to get involved now. We would love to see you on the field!